Disney Announces ‘Wreck-It Ralph 2’ for 2018

At Disney’s Facebook page, director Rich Moore, co-director Phil Johnston, and voice of Wreck-It Ralph himself John C. Reilly just announced the somewhat inevitable news: Disney is working on Wreck-It Ralph 2. The film will continue the adventures of the large-fisted video game character that grossed more than $470 million worldwide and was a popular hit with critics as well. (It earned an 87 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.) Right after describing the story as “top secret” the feed stopped working (or at least it did on my computer), which was either a fortuitous technical glitch or brilliant teasing on the part of Disney. (The film will apparently follow Ralph as he discovers the internet.)

Disney also unveiled a first image from the film:

The first film followed Reilly’s character, the villain of an old Donkey Kong-esque arcade cabinet, as he decides he’s sick of being a bad guy, leaves his post, and heads off on an adventure through the world of video games. He eventually winds up in a candy-themed racing game, where he makes the acquaintance of a little girl named Vanellope von Schweetz (voiced by Sarah Silverman), and finds a new calling as a hero. Though the first Ralph spent most of its time in the fictional games created specifically for the movie, it also featured fun cameos from real classic video game characters from Super Mario Bros., Sonic, Pac-Man, and Street Fighter.

The real video game characters in the supporting cast and the way the movie really captured the flavor of those old arcade games were definitely the best parts of the first installment, along with Reilly’s performance as Ralph. (Nobody makes a better sweet-hearted lug.) With the world of games as big as it is, there should be plenty of material to mine for another film. Wreck-It Ralph 2 opens on March 9, 2018